


Count Your Lucky Stars

by braedens



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Best Friends, Christmas Fluff, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Ficlet, Fluff, Human!Derek, M/M, mentions of pack, sorry this is such a sped up fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-24
Updated: 2014-12-24
Packaged: 2018-03-03 05:56:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2840561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/braedens/pseuds/braedens
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The last thing Stiles expected to happen when he came home for Christmas break was to be greeted by Derek with a kiss.</p>
<p>Like, the very last thing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Count Your Lucky Stars

**Author's Note:**

> for the super cool super awesome alison! (minalover on tumblr)  
> happy holidays!

The last thing Stiles expected to happen when he came home for Christmas break was to be greeted by Derek with a kiss.

Like, the _very_ last thing.

He’d gotten off the plane no little than two hours ago, stopped by his dad and Melissa’s place to drop off his stuff and cook dinner for when his dad came home, and thought he’d surprise his best friend at his loft.

Stiles had known Derek since as long as he could remember. Derek moved to Beacon Hills when Stiles was around 8 years old. It was the same year that his mom passed away, and his dad, burying himself in his work as the county sheriff, had crossed the paths of Talia Hale and her family. When he noticed hey had a son, around the age of 14, well, that’s how Derek got roped into being Stiles babysitter while his dad worked longer shifts. 

At first, Stiles thought it was odd how often Derek babysat. As a teenager, he assumed he’d have cooler things to do. But there was also the fascination that an older kid was hanging out with him, and well, Stiles could really talk his ear off.

Eventually, their babysitter-babysittee relationship had developed into an actual friendship as Stiles got older, and Derek started hanging out with him as a friend rather than him having to get paid.

The two were polar opposites; Stiles was the nerdy, incredibly intelligent in all the places it didn’t count, sarcastic, smart-witted kid with a short attention span and a huge collection of Marvel comics. Derek was the silent, collective type, never saying much, but saying everything with his expressions and eyebrows. He had a lot of skills, but no hobbies.

It wasn’t a surprise to either families that they would become best friends over the years. Derek was like his stoic big brother; Stiles looked up to him. Over the years, they became incredibly close, to the extent where it almost felt like they were related.

But one day, the summer after Derek graduated high school, he up and left Beacon Hills, without so much as saying goodbye. And you’d bet your ass Stiles was pissed beyond hell. But he was also so confused, because when he went to go to the family’s house one day, out by the end of the city line, it was covered with police tape and burned to half ashes.

Stiles spent a long time trying to pull information from his dad, who hadn’t told him anything about his best friend’s disappearance. It was like Stiles had never felt as much pain in his life since his mother died. And what’s worse than someone you love leaving your life forever is not even knowing why they left in the first place.

But time passed, and Stile’s had to get over it. And that’s when he met Scott. And when he joined lacrosse. And soon he had a group of friends that almost let him forget about Derek. His life was the ideal teenage boy’s life for all throughout high school, despite his spastic, nerdy exterior excluding him from popularity. He breezed through high school, though, with the best grades, sharing the valedictorian spot with Lydia Martin at their graduation. And when he, Scott, Allison, Isaac, Lydia, and Kira all came greet their families on the school lawn in their maroon cap and gowns, that’s when he swore his eyes deceived him. Because Derek Hale was standing there, in a white button up, holding a bouquet of cheesy graduation balloons and the most apologetic face. And Stiles stormed right over to him, fake diploma still in his hands,

And hugged him.

He hugged him so fucking hard, pushing aside all his anger.

“You fucking asshole.” He muttered, his eyes stinging as he tightened his hold around Derek’s shoulders. He could heel Derek’s arms slowly wrap around him and press his nose to the side of his head.

“I know.”

And Stiles realized just how in love he was with this incredible asshole.

Derek ended up telling him about Kate soon after, when they were both in Stiles room, sitting cross legged in his bed. Stiles remembered Derek talking about her every once in a while before he left, how they’d went on dates and hooked up here and there. He told Stiles how she manipulated Derek in such a short amount of time, and how she had burned his house. Luckily, none of his family was home at the time, but the damage was too much for them. The Hale house had been owned by generations of their family, and it was charred.

“We had to leave, I had to leave. I should have told you. I’m so sorry, Stiles.” Derek told him in the dead of night.

Stiles had never thought he’d see Derek Hale cry. He wasn’t even the emotional type. But water waded at the lower lids of his eyes, and Stiles already knew he had forgiven him long ago when he pulled Derek into his arms and let him cry.

 

That summer, before Stiles left for Columbia, he spent every possible moment with Derek. He introduced him to his friends, caught him up on everything that had happened in Beacon Hills, and in return Derek told him about his family moving, traveling the globe, Derek studying away in London. It was almost like no time had passed between them. And when the summer ended, and Stiles boarded a plane to New York with a promise from Derek to actually keep in touch this time, he felt like he actually had everything he wanted in life.

Derek kept him promise. He called, sent packages, even made a few trips to visit Stiles. And with every letter, every “Goodnight” after a phone call, and every hug goodbye, even though Stile’s would never admit it out loud, he fell more in love with his best friend.

 

Which was why the last thing he expected was to be greeted by Derek at the newly-built Hale house by his best friend’s lips on his.

_This has to be a goddamn dream._ Stiles thought to himself.

Derek parted from him, and smiled so wide, and Stiles swore he was seeing fucking stars, because this was not his life. Derek Hale kissing him, in his doorway, in front of his- wait, was that his mom?

Talia Hale stood behind him in the doorway, bright eyed and hand clasped together, a lot older than Stiles remembered. Stiles was twenty now, he last time seeing her would have been more than six years ago.

“Hey, Stiles!” Derek greeted, and Stiles forgot that talking was a thing he was capable of, but Derek was already pulling him in for a hug. And Stiles’ mind was zipping in a million possible scenarios when he heard Derek whisper in his ear.

“Please, just go along with this for now.”

Stiles just blinked as Derek pulled away, taking a step back. He didn’t even get a word edgewise before Talia was walking up to him with open arms.

“Stiles, sweetie, it’s been so long! You were so small when I last saw you.” She said, smothering him in a hug.

He chuckled lightly, still trying to work up his motor skills. “Uh, ha, yeah, it has.”

She pulled back, her grin way too overbearing.

“You know, when Derek told me that you two had finally started dating, I wasn’t even a bit surprised! You both always had such a special connection.” she said, glancing at Derek. Stiles took the opportunity, shooting his own glare at Derek.

“Yeah,” he gritted through his teeth. “Me either. Derek, I have a box of your stuff I can’t carry in, mind helping me out, uh, babe.” he asked, jabbing a thumb at the door.

“Sure, Stiles.”

Stiles waited until they were far enough from the front door and blocked by the Jeep before getting in Derek’s face.

“What the actual fuck was that?” he cried, hands frantically gesturing to the house with Derek’s mom, who thought he and Derek were a couple.

Derek rubbed a hand over his face, and God, he needed to really not do that in front of Stiles.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry, holy shit.” Derek started, his voice a bit weaker than his usual “I’m going to rip your throat out” tone. “My mother showed up unannounced to celebrate the holidays with me, and brought up how I’m all alone and then she tried to ask why I wasn’t seeing anyone, and tried to get me to invite her friends’ daughter over for Christmas dinner and I really didn’t want to have that argument with her so I may have just told her that me and you were together so she’d stop doing that thing where she looks like I need to be fixed so I need you to just play the part for now, for my sake and hers.” The words fumbled out of him in a furious whisper, Stiles wasn’t sure he’d heard Derek say so much in one sitting in his entire life. But his face drooped and he looked utterly drained, and Stiles wanted to badly to kiss that frown away.

“Wait, so, you told her it was me?” Stiles asked frantically. “Why didn’t you just say it was some random girl or guy somewhere else?”

“Because then she’d want to meet them, Stiles. How can I introduce her to someone who was nonexistent?”

Stiles mouth gaped, then shut it. That was true. It’s not like he wasn’t jumping at the idea to date Derek. Since as long as he could remember, he’d wanted to be the one to get to hold Derek’s hand, or call him absurd nicknames, or cuddle on the couch with him watching Criminal Minds reruns. It’s just that the idea of pretending to be in a relationship with him would be more helpful to Derek, and more torture for Stiles. Derek would never see him that way, nothing more than his best friend.

But Stiles couldn’t help just wanting to do everything for Derek that he could. God, he was such a sap.

“You are so fucking lucky you’re my best friend.” he sighed. “But this is just until she leaves. I’m not doing this every time she comes to visit.”

Derek’s eyes grew wide, like a goddamn puppy, and Stiles thought that maybe that face alone was enough to convince him that this was a good idea. “Really?”

Stiles rolled his eyes. “Are you trying to get me to say no? Geez.” Though, Stiles new for damn sure that he wouldn’t say no. Not to Derek. “What do I have to do?”

The male gained all of his composure back, his scared, pained face washing away, pulling at Stiles’ fucking heartstring.

“You just have to pretend we’re in love, or whatever. Just go along so she believes it.”

“Oh, I can make her believe it. I _am_ a crafted liar.”

A hint of a smirk was etching on Derek’s face. “Yeah, because Scott just happened to know you were throwing him a surprise birthday party a week before his birthday.”

“Hey, no, Scott has like a built in lie detector. That should so not count.”

Derek scoffed. “Yeah, sure.” His eyes glanced over to the front door of his house. “We should probably go back inside before my mother thinks we’re out here swapping saliva.”

“Isn’t that the point?” Stiles responded, waggling his eyebrows.

Yeah, he wasn’t sure how long he was going to be able to keep this up.

“So, when did you two get together?” Talia asked, causing Stiles to almost choke on the piece of chicken he had stuffed in his mouth. 

Talia insisted Stiles stay over for dinner, because of course Derek’s boyfriend would stay for dinner they are dating after all. And since he didn’t really have room to argue, he figured better to be safe than suspicious.

Derek and Stiles locked eyes for a second in panic, and before Derek’s panicked face gave them away, he figured to wing it.

“Last summer.” Stiles spit out, glancing towards Derek with a doe smile, hoping he understood that he knew exactly what he was doing. “I was pretty bummed that I had to stay in New York for a month because of my job, and couldn’t go home to visit, and Derek flew himself and my dad to come see me.”

Stiles wasn’t lying, really. Derek had come and visited in what Stiles’ remembered was the loneliest month he thought he’d had. He could remember the exact day, really. It was all a surprise to him, which kind of made everything seem more unrealistic.

Just a week before that, he called Derek, per usual once a week in his promise to stay connected. And, of course, Derek would be the first one he’d tell when he needed to vent about something.

“I’m stuck here in hell, Derek!” he said, in lieu of a hello when Derek called him on the beginning of the summer.

“Hello to you, too.” He replied, a slight chuckle in his voice.

“This is serious shit, Der.” Stiles groaned, throwing himself backwards onto his bed.

“Hey, tell me what’s wrong.” And he said it with so much sincerity and care that Stiles automatically went into his complaints, indulging the ears of his best friends by telling him how his boss said it was too early in him getting hired to be able to take vacation days, and so he couldn’t go home to see his dad or his friends.

“Or you.” Stiles mumbled, a hand tugging at his overgrown hair.

He wasn’t sure how, but Derek made him feel loads better about the situation than he did before the call, promising to even get Stiles’ dad to get into the habit of video-chatting him. His days in the call office didn’t seem as dreadful as he anticipated. Sure, they were still boring as hell and filled with the most obnoxious crew members he’d ever known, but still better.

And if the first day of summer vacation, Stiles goes to his favorite New York diner after his 10 hour shift for a extra order of curly fries, at least no one can stop him. At least, that’s what he thought, until he tried to sit in his favorite booth, but two other people were already occupying it.

Those people being Derek Hale and his goddamn _father._

They must have both spotted him, because their shit-eating grins grew as the incredulous look on Stiles face slipped on.

He walked up to the table, and his dad slid over the plastic seats to make room for his son, and he had to blink a few times to make sure this was real. His eyes bore into Derek.

“You flew all the way to the other side of the freaking country to see me?”

His dad shifted in the seat until he could place an arm on his son’s shoulder.

“You think I’d leave you alone in New York for a whole summer? You’d probably get yourself framed in a mass murder on accident or something.”

“Glad to know you have so much faith in me, dad.” but Stiles’ smile radiated anything but animosity. His dad was here, for the summer! And so was his best friend.

“You know, this was all Derek’s idea. He basically forced me to come. Bought the tickets and everything.” the sheriff said, his eyes not even leaving the diner’s menu.

And Stiles looked up at Derek with as much admiration and appreciation he could muster in a look, rewarded with the blush of Derek’s cheeks as he stared down at the table. When Derek finally looked up at him, their eyes meeting again, Stiles mouthed a silent “Thank you”, trying to explain how thankful he was to have someone who cared for him as much as his father did, who would go out of their way, and not to mention comfort zone (because he knows Derek does NOT like flying) all for him.

And maybe, when it was past midnight and his dad had taken refuge in Stiles’ bed, leaving Derek and himself to share the pull-out sofa bed in his living room, Derek facing opposite of him an Stiles staring at the way his back pulled back and forth with each breath, maybe he’d wonder how lucky he’d gotten to fall in love with his best friend.

Talking about the story, he could almost forget that this was fake, and that he needed to just pass a test with Talia, but he didn’t even really notice ho naturally it came to him to talk about Derek. Hell, he loved talking about Derek. Maybe because there was nothing ever bad to say.

He glanced up to look at Talia from where he was sliding his chicken breast on the plate, to see her thin but wide smile beaming at him. And for a second, Stiles thought he might be able to get out of this with at least his dignity. That was, of course, until he locked eyes with Derek, whose expression was too much mixed with distraught and discomfort for Stiles to bear.

Had he said something out of line? He and Derek didn’t even have the time to hash out details, or get their stories straight.

“I’m, uh, I think I’ll get some air, if you’ll excuse me.” not bothering to look at either of them.

 

He’d been leaning against the hood of his jeep outside for a total of four minutes before he heard the front door of Derek’s house open, and then shut. Stiles tried his best to seem like he didn’t notice; continued pressing his back into the car and staring up, giving his eyes anywhere else to look beside Derek, who was now leaning against the hood with him, only a foot or so apart.

A beat passed before “Are you okay?”

Stiles only knew to laugh at a question so vague.  “I’ve been better.”

He could feel Derek’s eyes boring into him, suffocating him and preventing him the ability to speak. This was his best friend, why was he feeling so off put now, of all times?

“Look,” Derek started, “if this faking stuff is too much for you, we don’t have to do it. It was stupid of me to ask you so suddenly.”

The brunet kept his eyes up, a smile tugging at his lips slightly.  “I don’t think I can do it, honestly,” he spoke conversationally to the stars. “It’d be hard enough to just fake this with a stranger. I never imagined it would be worse with someone you actually are in love with.”

Simple as that, it spilled out, tumbling out of his mouth like falling rocks. The funny thing was, Stiles wasn’t even scared. He knew Derek didn’t feel the same, but he couldn’t just give him any reason why he couldn’t help him.

He took the risk of looking to Derek from the corner of his eye, and the man’s posture went slack, his eyes glazing and mouth gaping.

“In love….” Derek said slowly, as if the words would cut off from him at any moment. “…with me?”

Stiles had to roll his eyes at that, really. Derek was so clueless. “You think the story I just told your mom was a lie? I’m the epitome of a cliché; the child of unrequited love and the person who falls in love with their best friend. Gross.” A sigh left his lips.

It was quiet between them, almost to the point of being awkward, and to avoid any more embarrassment, Stiles stood up straight from the car. “Look, I thin-“

And then Derek was in his space, noses dragging and lips brushing, but not touching, and Stiles had to freeze his entire body because _what the actual fuck?_ His eyes raced over Derek’s face, frantic, because Derek’s body was lined with his, pinning him between Derek’s warm, solid chest and the cold, metal exterior of his jeep.

“Why the hell did you never tell me?” he muttered, his breath mixing with Stiles, and he didn’t even get a witty comment thrown in before their lips crashed together, neither one of them bothering to need to grasp the moment, because the kiss was long overdue in Stiles’ head.

Maybe he’s dreaming, or maybe Derek might have felt sorry for him in some way, but when Derek’s tongue slides against his bottom lip, opening his mouth more, he knows this can’t just be one-sided. He grabs fistfuls of his shirt and tugs slowly, purposefully, until Derek gets the hint and moves closer to him.

It is lazy, and languid, all soft, urging noises, Stiles’ fingers tangled in the small strands of hair at the nape of Derek’s neck, the feel of Derek’s arms tightening around his waist and eliminating as much space between them as they can.

The pull apart after a few long moments, mostly to catch their breath, and Stiles feels his lips are swollen, and wonders if they are as wet and red as Derek’s are. And he breaks into a laugh.

“Why the hell are you laughing?” Derek asks when Stiles leans his head on his shoulder, shaking from laughter.

“We spent all this time feeling unrequited and shit when we could have been doing _that_?”

When he looks up, he gets to see that rare smile in Derek; the one he only gets to see when he knows Derek is truly happy about something. Stiles has seen it very rarely over the course of their friendship that it surprises him that one of those smiles were meant for him.

“Maybe we should make up for lost time, then.” Derek says, dragging his hands up from stiles waist to cup his cheeks, his thumb drawing circles. Stiles can’t help but hold on to his wrists, as if he’s the tether he needs to remind himself that this is real.

“Yeah, maybe.” He says, his grin unmistakably wide.

And Stiles wonders how lucky he must be to have fallen in love with his best friend.

And a few days later, Stiles wonders how lucky he must still be to be able to call Derek Hale his boyfriend.

Even three years later, on the first Christmas they have in their house together in Beacon Hills, Stiles graduated from university and starting graduate school, Stiles will pull out the black velvet ring box from his sock drawer and realize how lucky he must be to finally be able to call Derek his husband.

_Pretty damn lucky_ , he thinks when Derek says yes.


End file.
